Nathan Kelly

Nathan is one of Australia’s foremost executive search specialists in the ESG, sustainability, and environment sector. His recruitment career began in 2001 when he relocated from New Zealand to work as a recruitment consultant in London, before moving to Australia where he played a pivotal role at seek.com.au during the lead-up to its ASX listing.

In 2018, he joined Talent Nation – Australia’s market-leading sustainability and environmental executive search firm, where he has spent the last eight years building on the organisation’s reputation as the trusted recruitment partner for the ESG and sustainability community.

His work spans retained executive search, ESG function design and team structure advisory, fractional Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) engagements, salary benchmarking using Talent Nation’s widely referenced ESG Remuneration Report, and specialist TA partnership for roles beyond an internal team’s reach.

He has successfully placed talent at every level, from Executive Director and C-suite through to Analyst and Associate, across both executive search and retained service models. His functional expertise covers Sustainability, ESG (Environmental, Social & Governance), Climate Change, Carbon and GHG, Stakeholder and Community Engagement, Sustainability Reporting and Disclosures, and Sustainable Finance.

He has a strong track record securing talent for high-impact organisations including the Australian Sustainable Finance Institute, UN Global Compact Network Australia, and B Lab Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, as well as leading corporates across Energy & Utilities, Finance & Investment, Mining & Resources, Infrastructure, Property, Healthcare, Insurance, Telecommunications, Retail, Logistics, Food & Agriculture, Manufacturing, Waste Management, Legal Services, and the NGO sector.

For candidates, Nathan offers access to unadvertised senior and executive roles placed through direct search, genuine market intelligence on salaries and demand, and the kind of frank, experienced counsel on career decisions that only comes from deep and sustained immersion in the sector.

Nathan holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Marketing and a Bachelor of Commerce in Management from the University of Otago as well as a Diploma in Business from the University of Melbourne.